Okay, I'm off on something else now

Isn't it strange when you find photos of yourself on the Internet?

This is Wellington, a Havanese owned by our clients John and Teresa. Wellie and I performed some tricks on-stage at FidoFest in 2009, and hence this photo. Crazy! Wellington is a great little pups, fo' sho'!

Adding to the Family

Some of you may know (but mostly not I'm sure) that I plan to add another member to my family in the coming months. Naturally said member will be of the canine variety.

No, not this one. I already added him! However, said new family member will be a Basenji. I will be purchasing my new friend from a breeder. A recent conversation with a colleague has made me realize that, even among dog professionals, there is a lot of confusion about what constitutes an ethical breeder and how to identify one.

Cos it ain't easy.

In order to find a breeder who behaves ethically one must first have a set of standards or expectations. That means doing some research first. No one can tell you, "this is an ethical breeder". It's subjective. You have to know what you think is important, and then make your own judgment.

Here are some of my expectations:

• The breeder competes in venues appropriate to the breed. (Conformation, performance events, field trials)
• Breed appropriate health tests are performed on breeding animals and extended family alike.
• The breeder will take back a dog of their breeding at any time during the animal's life.
• The breeder offers health "warrantees". There may be some limitations here, but those things covered should extend through the life of the dog and not entail the dog's return.
• The breeder has an enforceable contract and requires spay/neuter for animals deemed non-breeding potential or sold into strictly pet homes.
• The breeder welcomes the buyer to their home and proudly shows off their dogs. If puppies are on the ground s/he lets the buyer see them where they live as well as any other dogs on the property. Naturally they will appear happy, well cared for and healthy.
• The breeder interviews the buyer as intensely as the buyer interviews them!

I'm sure I'm forgetting some things here. My point is that you can't decide to buy a puppy and with less knowledge about dogs than you have about televisions, expect to find a good breeder. When you decide to purchase a puppy you have an obligation to educate yourself and only support the best, however you may define that.

We all understand that if we don't research a product and end up buying one that falls apart shortly there after, we have mainly ourselves to blame. Yet because we are dealing with living creatures we somehow have the expectation that the person we purchase from automatically has to be kind and responsible and if they are not, well, we can simply blame them for being horrible while accepting no responsibility ourselves.

Yes, irresponsible, unethical breeders are... well unethical and irresponsible! Yuck!

But just as breeders have a moral obligation to act in the best interest of their charges, so do buyers. Human beings are what they are. Whenever there is something to gain from doing so, you can expect people to be myopic or cut corners. Buyers need to educate themselves. This helps ensure that they obtain a good pet and it helps all dogs in the long run by not reinforcing bad behavior!

I'll post more next week but in the mean time...

What do you look for? Or do you choose to bypass and adopt from a rescue organization instead? (Which may entail it's own set of challenges!)

A Lesson in Body Language

I came across this video whilst reading another training blog (K-9 Solutions of Maine)



What do you think this dog is "saying"? Is he purring? Does he enjoy this? I will comment on this later in the week.

Knock out Dog Fighting

I was wasting time today, messing around on Facebook when I saw a video from Knock Out Dog Fighting. Naturally my next step was to watch some pretty heartbreaking PSAs. It's a great message of course - dog fighting is cruel, inhumane and wrong.

But that's not what impressed me. I mean, all of us who love dogs know that.

What impressed me was that they are R+ teachers! They visit schools, juvenile detention centers and the like, but rather than lecturing the kids about what they shouldn't be doing,  they show them what they can do. Any good dog trainer knows that you can't just turn off behavior - it needs an outlet. I love that they are using this method to help teach kids that there are alternatives to such violent and desperate behavior, such as developing an interest in martial arts, physical fitness, dog training, CPR training and science. Only by helping them can we help the dogs too.

Check them out at Knockoutdogfighting.org.

The current newsletter is out!

Yes, that's right, new articles, classes, etc are flashing out into the world. You'll have to finish reading "Alien Abduction" on our website! Sorry folks.

Please check out fab new stuff from our own Linda McVay as well as Stormi King and sending us fantastic article is Margaret Duclos, all the way from sunny California! (Or at least often sunny as she is in the Bay area.)

Don't forget we have the UCLA Dogs Calendar Pup contest going on too. See the newsletter for more info! Be aware, however, you're competing against Murphy...

Crazy cute isn't he?

Okay, okay, next part

Here's your current installment of the Alien Abduction article.

If you have a dog that balks, puts on the brakes or shies away when being reached for there is a good chance he has made an unpleasant association with your hands coming toward him, sometimes in a specific setting or when the human has a particular stance. Think about it for a moment. When are most of us faced with this scenario? Often time is of the essence and we are leaving to go somewhere. We may need to be off to work or an appointment or we are leaving the dog park. We might be a little tense, either because we are late or past frustrations. No matter where it is, it’s time to go!

So we reach for, perhaps even go to grab, our dogs by the collar or scoop them up. Our pups may attempt to dance away so we must be quick! If we succeed in nabbing them, what happens next? We clip the dog on leash and leave the park, put them in their kennel and leave for the day or just hoist them up into the air. In the process we often drag the dog into our bodies to do so, and for smaller dogs it’s just like an alien abduction! One moment you’re on the ground, the next, you’re up in the air! YIKES! None of this is a fun thing for the dog, so chances are next time your dog will try that much harder to avoid it by staying out of reach. It’s not that we intend to do this. In fact, most of us are not aware that it’s happening at all!

While it’s unfortunate that this happens it is all too common. But there’s hope! Unpleasant associations can be changed. This is the very essence of “desensitization and counter-conditioning”. If your little dog dances just out of reach when you want to pick her up, start teaching her that your reach isn’t scary. If your big dog puts on the brakes the moment your hand goes for his collar, teach him that moving into you is a pleasant thing! Even for dogs who enjoy being touched and are comfortable being handled, it is not unusual for that one specific move – the collar grab – to be unpleasant. If this is your dog, don’t feel badly. Just work on it!

Stay tuned for more!

Alien Abduction

Most of us have been there. You’re perhaps 8 years old attending some family function. All your favorite cousins and aunts and uncles are there. And then there is that one relative. Perhaps it’s that friendly, out going bear of an uncle. Or your great-aunt you haven’t seen in well… maybe twice. They adore you and you love them but the prospect of seeing them is daunting. This well meaning family member who is at least twice your size cannot help but tousle your hair, pinch your cheeks and probably squish you in a hug tight enough to squeeze the stuffing out of you. You wish they’d just give you a little space or let you move at your own pace, right? Well, if this is you, there are a lot of dogs who might sympathize.


Most of us have seen a dog back or dance away when reached for or seen someone go to pick up a small dog or puppy only to have her stay just out of arm’s reach. If not with our own dogs, we’ve certainly seen it happen at the dog park or a friend’s house. Well that’s the dog is equivalent of the scenario described above. It can be very frustrating, especially if you and your pup must be on your way somewhere, but it’s usually no fun for the dog either.


Sometimes it’s simply a game. Dogs do, after all, love a good game of Chase-me. Most of the time, however, it’s simply a matter of the dog not wanting to be grabbed. Perhaps he has other things he wants to do, but more often than not we have made being reached for something less than fun.


You'll have to wait for the rest or visit us at the website!